Here’s a breakdown of what happens at various hour markers once you have surpassed 12 hours of fasting…get ready to reap some benefits!
Hour 12: Getting there- A 12 hours fast is standard for most people and at this point your body is still consuming glucose and hasn’t yet converted to fat.
Hour 16: Fat Burning Begins- As glucose depletes, your body begins burning fat for fuel. A workout around the 16-18 hour mark will boost fat burning even more.
Hour 18: Fasting “Sweet Spot”- Many people break their fast around the 18 hour mark, but with benefits just kicking off it is best to stick with it a few more hours!
Hour 20: Peak Fat Burn Zone- Your body is a fat burning machine. By now, fat is being burned and ketosis begins, especially in those following low carb diets. Ketosis is a metabolic state that occurs when your body burns fat for energy instead of glucose.
Hour 24: Ketosis Kicks Off- Once you make it to hours 24 and beyond the health benefits of fasting continue to grow as autophagy begins. Autophagy is your body’s cellular recycling system. It allows a cell to disassemble its junk parts and repurpose the salvageable bits and pieces into new, usable cell parts.
Benefits of Intermittent Fasting
- Massive fat burning and weight loss
- Increased human growth hormone production
- Enhanced brain function
- Insulin sensitivity
- Improvement of beneficial gut bacteria
- Reduction in cancer
- Leptin sensitivity
- Ghrelin hormone normalization (hunger hormone)
- Elimination of sugar cravings
- Reduced oxidative stress
- Increased lifespan and longevity